Ruby Macomber

Summary

Ruby Macomber is a creative non-fiction writer, poet, community artist, and activist. The first poem she wrote was a love letter to the sacrifices, life, and compassion of her late nan, and every piece since has grown with the warmth of that. She is a fierce believer in writing as a vehicle for personal expression and is passionate about equitable and accessible creative opportunities for young people.

“Before anything else, I am a daughter of the diaspora, of Te Moana-Nui-a Kiwa and all the waters that connect us. The Fale-ship, in platforming other artists from across the moana, affirmed the numerous ways Moana creatives call attention to the complexities of whakapapa – and lay them out in the sun like kava root – knowing it does not end here.” - Ruby

Creative Process

My writing practice has always been mobile. Like many twenty-somethings, I write in the silences between the 9-5, the 5-9, and on the bus back again. I am so comfortable writing in the crevasses of a day that any dedicated time feels over-indulgent.

My Fale-ship with Tautai did not change how I create (or where to be honest), but affirmed how important it is for artists to be resourced. How, yes, writing is an accessible art practice. Yes, a good poem can be crafted from almost anywhere.

But a residency affords breathing space you do not realise you need until you have it.

Creative Workspace

Writing, unlike many creative practices, requires few materials. I am grateful to have spent some time at Samoa House Library on Karangahape Road over the two weeks. A lot of my poems about Rotuma are also about resistance and reclamation. I love the kaupapa of Samoa House Library – how resistance, celebration and reclamation find a safe landing place on gentle shelves.

Final Work

I finished a piece called Sina ma Tinirau – a poem aspiring to bridge the gap between traditional Rotuman love stories and the complex realities of contemporary Pasifika relationships in the diaspora.

Having normalised writing from the crevasses, I have also normalised artistic and physical burnout. The time of the Fale-ship coincided with one of the busiest creative periods I have ever experienced – I was more book than body. More metaphor than me.

But writing to Rotuma gives more than it takes.

Fale-ship Questionnaire

What inspires you?

I am inspired, first and foremost, by my elders, both biological and community. The works of Basil Leo, Mere Taito, and Vilson Hereniko demonstrate the plethora of ways writing can ignite unity. Working in the criminal justice space, I am also inspired by Indigenous rangatahi - at all odds we are storytellers, we persist.

What do you do for a living?

I facilitate creative writing and expression workshops as part of Te Kaahui - a creative programme that has engaged with over 300 young people in Correctional Facilities and communities throughout Aotearoa. I love how this kaupapa speaks to the intersection of arts and activism - and affirms the place of writing as a form of community mobilisation.

Do you have a specific place where you like to create?

I've found several spaces around Tamaki Makaurau - including Samoa House Library on Karangahape Road, and Corban Estate Arts Centre to be consistent spaces of inspiration. These spaces are also grounded in community, and affirms how no writer works in isolation.